First Club Date (2017)
Andrea Lam, piano
Composer Note:
First Club Date is a suite of five frequently jazz-related movement for cello and piano and is inspired by my son Jonah’s near-total immersion into jazz over the last few years. Since the cello is so infrequently found in jazz ensembles, I decided to create a work for him that would traverse many sides of jazz, from ragtime to funk. It was also written for Matt Haimovitz, who premiered the entire work at Tippet Rise in Montana last month.
The first movement begins like a French overture, with sober double-dotted rhythms. Maybe this present the severe, somewhat stressed cellist in classical mode who wishes to break out into the blues, but the opening returns to re-ensnare and re-capture the heart…
The second is influenced by Jonah’s favorite new jazz band, Snark Puppy, and their ever-present bass grooves.
— Aaron Jay Kernis
Movements:
1. Prelude to a Pizz. (or, Overture to a French Pizz.)
2. Puppy Love
3. Matt’s Monk-ish Machinations
4. Elevating the (Jazz) Standard
5. Jonah’s Jumpin’ Jive
Commissioned by Tippet Rise Art Center.